Alexandra Kemp, county councillor for Clenchwarton and Lynn South, resigned from the Labour group last week to join Richard Bird as an Independent.

A long-standing opponent of the incinerator which the county council wants to build at King’s Lynn, Miss Kemp said she quit because she felt she was being pressured over how she voted and what she said about the burner.

She has teamed up with Mr Bird, who represents North Coast division, to form the new Independent group.

She said: “We in the Independent Group are a party of equals. We have no party whip so we can speak up for the areas we represent freely. This is what people want and expect.

“I do exactly what it says on the tin and continue to stand by the Labour values and pledges in my manifesto.

“Improving hospitals and schools, more apprenticeships, better jobs and infrastructure, improving the lot of carers and people with dementia, securing flood defences, keeping council tax down and helping small businesses thrive. And no incinerator in King’s Lynn.”

Her switch means Labour now has 14 councillors at County Hall, the same as UKIP, with the Conservatives on 40, Lib Dems with 10, Green four and two Independents.